body
WHEREAS, Harvey Adams Jr., remembered for his conviction and determination to make Pittsburgh a better place to live and work, will be honored at the 2019 Spirit of King Awards on January 10 at the Kingsley Association; and,
WHEREAS, born in 1929, Harvey Jr. spent his childhood in Polish Hill before graduating from South Hills High School and attending West Virginia State University; and,
WHEREAS, after serving his country in the Korean War, Harvey Jr. was hired in 1955 by the Pittsburgh Police Department after achieving the first ever perfect score on the entrance exam, going on to ascend through the ranks on his way to becoming chief of the Pittsburgh Housing Authority Police; and,
WHEREAS, during his time with the police, Harvey Jr. was also elected president of the NAACP Pittsburgh Chapter, a position held from 1976-1992 during which time he took a firm stance against racism and injustice within the police force, his efforts leading to the creation of the 1-1-1-1 plan, which prohibited discrimination by requiring the department to hire one black male office, one black female officer, on white male office and one white female officer; and,
WHEREAS, Harvey Jr. was instrumental in demanding fair hiring practices at Volkswagen when the corporation opened a factory in Pittsburgh and fought to ensure African American workers had jobs during Pittsburgh's Renaissance II Project; and,
WHEREAS, he was also instrumental in founding the Freedom from Hunger Campaign to benefit underprivileged families and helped establish the city's first African American Heritage Day Parade; and,
WHEREAS, Harvey Jr.'s other passion was to help students achieve their dreams through higher education, as he established the Neighborhood Academy through the POISE Foundation, which in turn created the Harvey Adams Scholarship Fund in his honor to distribute educational scholarships to young men and women; and,
WHEREAS, Harvey Adams Jr. passed on September 7, 2009 at the age of 80...
Click here for full text